


An Improper Set

by quilleth



Series: Tea for Two [1]
Category: Seven Kingdoms: The Princess Problem (Visual Novel)
Genre: Extended Demo Spoilers, F/M, Tumblr Prompt, i am looking for fluff and if i cannot find it i will make it, willfull rearranging of canon events to suit my needs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-24 20:42:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17711228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quilleth/pseuds/quilleth
Summary: A response for a prompt on tumblr: a "you nearly died kiss" which took entirely too long to come up with and multiple variations and rewrites to get to this, In which the author reads too many historical romance novels and shamelessly abuses the tropes found therein





	An Improper Set

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you @firetan for the title suggestion and breakdown!! and thank you @Eithe for the prompt <33

Even taking the steps two or three at a time, the climb to the practice room had never taken so long. There was no last minute rehearsal; if there had been, Jasper rationalized, skidding on a landing, he and the other servants would have known about it. So who had sent Elisabeth that note and why? _Wrong_ , his heartbeat thrummed in his ears. _All wrong._ A resounding crash echoed from just ahead and he came to a brief, stumbling halt.

A voice cried “Lizzie!” but Jasper barely heard it over the frantic pounding of his own heart as, mind racing with fervent prayers, he sprinted toward the practice room. His pace only slowed when he could see dim light pouring out of the open doorway and heard a familiar voice say, “Oh do let go, Noah! I am alright, honest!” The knot in his stomach loosened, releasing a flurry of butterflies, the rapid change in emotions making Jasper feel vaguely ill, but then, love had a tendency to do that to a person anyway. Listening to Elisabeth chatter with her brother, he walked to the room and stood silently in the doorway.

The balcony for the theatrical was completely smashed, clearly the source of the earlier crash, and just as clearly intended to be the cause of his lady’s demise Elisabeth stood a scant couple of feet from the doomed set piece, hands on her brother’s arms, placating. Strangely, or perhaps not in light of Noah’s match, Hamin was also there, looking more serious than Jasper had ever thought to see him. “Noah, really,” Elisabeth said again, “I am alright. I wasn’t hurt.”

“You’re bleeding! Look!” Noah interrupted Elisabeth by seizing hold of her hand to show where splinters from the broken set must have struck her, leaving behind a small trail of bright red that couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than blood.

With a rather bemused expression on her face, Elisabeth eyed her hand speculatively. “So I am…it’s just a scratch though. Nothing to get so worked up over.” She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket (Jasper felt oddly pleased that he had managed to convince her of the importance of always having a handkerchief on one’s person) and wrapped it around her injured appendage while Noah made semi-inarticulate noises of distress, with frequent appeals to his betrothed for assistance. Having procured a temporary bandage, Elisabeth gave her brother a sweet smile, clearly meant to be reassuring and held her hand up. "There, all wrapped up and nothing to worry about." She shot the ruined balcony a disgusted look. “It must not have been very strong wood or plaster to fly to pieces like that. I suppose that saves any of our friends from the perils of climbing about on it tomorrow though.”

Noah goggled at her as though she had just announced the sun was purple. "You nearly get crushed to death and your response is to critique the balcony’s construction?! Is that all you can say?"

Throwing her hands up in frustration, Elisabeth replied, "What else can I say Noah? Yes, someone tried to arrange for my demise, again but-”

"Again?! What do you mean again?"

"Oh blast, I hadn’t meant to tell you about that.”

“About what? Lizzie, what aren’t you telling me? Why aren’t you more upset about this and who tried to kill you before and when?”

"I _am_ upset about this, but I am not going to go into hysterics over it! And do you not remember the horse?"

"I am not hysterical!”

Elisabeth snorted.

Mercifully for her patience and Noah’s sanity, Hamin interrupted what promised to become a full blown spat. "Noah, Sunshine, as amusing as it is watching you argue with your sister, perhaps now that you know she’s safe, this isn’t the time or place. That crash is bound to draw attention."

"What are you saying?” Noah asked at the same time Elisabeth said “I want to look around!”

Sensing a possible return of the sibling squabbles, Jasper decided to make his presence known at last by stepping into the room and clearing his throat. "I am relieved to see you are safe, Lady Elisabeth, but I must agree with Prince Hamin. We should not be here." Elisabeth whirled around and beamed at him, her shoulders relaxing in obvious relief, a highly gratifying response that unsettled Jasper’s nervous in an entirely different manner than they had been no more half an hour ago.

"Jasper!” she cried. “How long have you been standing there?” She met him halfway between the doorway and the place where Noah still stood, anxiously talking to Hamin.

“Long enough,” Jasper replied, surveying her appearance. She certainly seemed largely unhurt, but plaster dust and bits of paint and wood had left their mark in various ways. There was even a piece of wood stuck in her hair from the looks of it.

She quirked an eyebrow at him in response to his cryptic answer, then shrugged. "Well good! Maybe you can get my brother to stop fussing so much and then we can try to look around. I’m sure they-"

"No.”

“But Jasper!” Elisabeth, trying (and failing) to ignore the smug look of triumph Noah was directing her way, cast an anxious glance over her shoulder at the shadowed depths of the room where she had last seen her assailant, though their footsteps had long since ceased to echo.

Jasper sighed. "I know, or rather I don’t know, but I know enough." He looked at Noah and Hamin, standing next to Elisabeth. "Lord Noah, Prince Hamin, I trust you can find you own ways back to your rooms?”

Noah rested a hand on Elisabeth’s shoulder. “I won’t leave Lizzie. Not after that note and not after that,” he said, gesturing at the broken set piece with a scowl.

"I will escort Lady Elisabeth back to her rooms to see her settled safely," Jasper replied.

"But-”

“Oh Noah, you know as well as I that I will be perfectly safe in Jasper’s company. You two go on.” She gave her brother a brief hug. "I am sorry you were so worried about me, and that someone sent you such a nasty note.“

"Glad you’re alright, Glitter,” Hamin said, deftly herding Noah to the door. "Try not to wander into anymore ominously darkened rooms, will you?"

"Oh ha ha, go on shoo, prince pirate!” Elisabeth rolled her eyes and made a shooing motion at him, ignoring the muffled sounds of her brother’s protests. Really, Noah was a dear, the best of elder brothers, but she was quite happy to let Hamin steer him away, no doubt to some other compromising situation with fewer balconies. _Well,_ she mused, _they do have the Matchmaker’s approval, so I suppose it wouldn’t be too terribly scandalous if they’re caught canoodling._ “Hmm?” she swiveled, realizing she was standing much closer to Jasper than she remembered. She caught a familiar, comforting scent of something warm and inviting- _like a nice cup of tea_ she thought- and took a hasty step back, feeling her face flush.

“I asked if you were prepared to leave or if you wanted to stagger our departures a little more from your brother’s. Are you well?” Jasper asked, noticing the alarm in her eyes, his own previous alarm beginning to creep back. She had nearly been _killed_. And he? He had been able to do nothing to prevent it.

“What? Oh yes, yes I’m fine,” she babbled, her voice half an octave higher. She took a deep breath before adding in a more normal tone, “I believe we should be far enough behind those two to leave now. If you really think we ought to go that is.” She cast another perplexed look over her shoulder, her brows furrowing.

"I do. Part of my job, part of my duty, is to advise you here at the Summit, Lady Elisabeth. Even when I don’t like the advice. Tomorrow is the theatricals, and soon after that the arrival of the ambassadors. Every eye will be on every delegate. And with all the attention you have drawn, especially on you. Whatever happened here tonight…it is my advice that you cannot afford to be linked to it. You should go now and rest. And tomorrow, act as if nothing has happened." Jasper replied feeling it was high time to get Elisabeth out of the room and back to where she belonged, where he had some relative certainty of her safety, before she darted off to do something rash and ill advised, like chase after potential would be murderers. 

Elisabeth sighed. "Oh very well then, but there must be some way to figure out what happened.” She conceded, moving out of the practice room and down the hall, looking up at him with a small frown.

"If there are answers to be found about tonight, I will find them. But if there are not, you can’t afford to waste any time looking for them yourself, my lady. It is a dangerous time. Not just the kind of dangerous tonight proved. But…matters of politics and alliances are never simple and never easy. And there is always a price. Just pray the one it asks of you is one you can afford to give." They walked back to Elisabeth’s rooms in a companionable, if tense silence that did not abate when the door was closed behind them. "I was bringing your evening tea earlier, but it’s likely gone cold by now,” Jasper said, desperate for anything to break the silence. "I can fetch you a fresh pot if you’d like."

"That won’t be necessary, thank you,” Elisabeth replied, looking suitably sobered from the conversation.

He softened, shoulders sagging ever so slightly. "I am sorry to distress you."

She glanced at him, startled. "Distress me? You didn’t distress me, Jasper. A balcony nearly landed on me, that’s all. And you are right, as usual,” she sighed. "It would be more than a little stupid of me to try to do anything about it all when I can’t even keep people from spilling various beverages on my lap." She flashed him a wry smile.

Jasper stepped nearer then, drawn into her space against his much abused better judgment. Taking her bandaged hand, he asked quietly, "How badly were you hurt?” He traced a finger along the side of her hand, idly toying with the haphazardly tied cloth.

“Not much,” she squeaked. Their eyes met, both of them clearly remembering a similar scene from earlier that week. A flush crept over her cheeks and Jasper felt his heart, traitorous organ that it was, constrict painfully in his chest, nearly missing when she added, “At least not badly enough to warrant Noah’s hysterics.”

"He was worried about you, and justly so."

"I know.”

"As was I."

Elisabeth’s gaze shot from their still joined hands to meet Jasper’s, noticing that he was watching her intently. A thousand responses flitted through her head but she could only manage a wordless sound of inquiry.

Smiling softly, Jasper said "You should take care of that properly before tomorrow.”

She nodded. “I will. It really isn’t bad at all, please don’t worry.”

“I am glad to hear it.” He reached out and gently dislodged the splinter of wood from Elisabeth’s hair, close enough to hear the breath catch in her throat. He opened his hand to show her.

"Goodness," she laughed breathlessly, "how long has that been there?”

Her laugh rather tipped the scale on the fine grasp he had on his more rash impulses. Sighing softly, he smoothed the wayward lock of hair away from her face, letting his hand linger against her cheek. She was so close, looking up at him with wide startled eyes, lips slightly parted. So close, and warm, and most importantly _alive._ Smiling, he murmured, “I am very happy that you are safe,” before pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead, the flowery scent of her hair rinses tickling his nose. Before he allowed himself to do anything more foolish, his yanked his actions back to rationality and stepped away. "Sleep well, Elisabeth." Catching a brief glimpse of her adorably confused and flushed face, he bowed and left the room.

Staring at her closed door, one hand lightly pressed to her brow Elisabeth said, in some consternation, "Sleep well? I’ll be lucky if I sleep at all now!” However, a smile lingered on her face as she went about getting ready for bed.

**Author's Note:**

> The title is a play on words with multiple meanings. Firs the obvious: the set, as in set for a play and improper, because well, rather rude to use that as an attempted murder weapon, Then there's the implications of impropriety with Elisabeth and Jasper's relationship and the two of them as a set. A dance in historical balls was often called a set, and goodness knows these two are rather good at dancing around each other and their feels


End file.
